StackEngine Announces Inaugural ‘State of Containers’ Survey Results

StackEngine, the platform that gives organizations the power to simply and massively deploy, manage, and scale resilient Docker applications, today announced the results of its inaugural ‘State of Containers’ survey, focusing on the issues and causes both leading to and prohibiting Docker adoption in the enterprise.

The survey, which polled 745 respondents in the enterprise virtualization and cloud computing field, was put together by StackEngine in partnership with both VMblog and CloudCow. It found that Docker adoption in the enterprise is indeed real and ahead of schedule, with more than 70% either using Docker or evaluating it in their organization. In fact, just 7% responded that they had not heard of the container solution, with 65% saying they were using VMware as their current infrastructure.

In addition to already strong adoption numbers in the enterprise, continued Docker adoption is seeing three strong drivers: pressure from QA/Test teams, prohibitive VMware costs, and a strong desire for hybrid cloud architecture.

"With Docker, we’re seeing a different adoption model from recent technology initiatives such as the cloud, which was in large part top-down, pushed by executive CIO initiatives or financial management," said David Marshall, founder of VMblog and recognized virtualization industry expert. "Docker usage, on the other hand, is being driven from the middle out, either by middle management or grassroots efforts."

Security Concerns & Lack of Operational Tools

For respondents saying that they had yet to adopt Docker, two reasons came in neck in neck: both the lack of operational tools for production and the security model were cited as the top reasons prohibiting further Docker adoption.

“It is clear that Docker has penetrated both the enterprise and the VMware user base, but concerns and challenges still remain,” said StackEngine CEO and Co-founder Bob Quillin. “StackEngine is aggressively attacking the two largest pain points for Docker adoption: a lack of operational tools for production and security visibility.”